Do you feel stressed at your job? Do you know how you can tell if your stress is healthy or not? Discover how to identify it and specific strategies to manage it.
Most of us have probably heard someone complain about the stress caused by work tasks at some point, and in fact, we have probably felt that way ourselves at some point. While it is true that stress is a normal psychological and physical reaction to certain situations, it can become a problem if it persists over time. For this reason, it is important to know what the symptoms of stress are and what we can do to manage it in a healthy way.
In this article you will discover what work stress is, specific techniques to manage it, as well as the signs to know when it is necessary to ask for professional help.
He stress, regardless of the area, is a physical and psychological reaction that depends on many factors, both internal (coping strategies, personality, etc.) and external (family circumstances, cultural elements, etc.). Whatever the circumstance, stress always originates when we perceive a demand that endangers our personal well-being, given that we perceive that we do not have sufficient resources to cope with it. Therefore, when we refer to the work stress this originates when a worker perceives that a certain situation or work demand is above his or her capabilities and resources to face it, thus causing stress.
Phases of stress: How to recognize if the stress I feel is functional?
He stress It can be functional and, in fact, drive us to improve our performance and achieve our goals at work. If sometimes stress can be harmful and other times, just the opposite, how can we know if the stress we have is healthy or not?
The reality is that this does not usually appear and disappear suddenly, but rather develops following different phases that can help us identify this issue:
Alert phase: At this stage is when we perceive a situation, in this case labor, complicated or new that we have to face and our body prepares for it. This phase ends when the situation is managed through the implementation of different strategies or when the situation that generates discomfort is avoided.
Resistance phase: When the previous phase does not cease and we remain in the alarm phase over time without any relaxation periods, the body enters the resistance phase. An example would be to see ourselves in a situation in which we have a lot job behind, we do not have enough time to do it and our abilities to carry out these tasks are limited. In this way, it generates frustration and suffering and we begin to notice that we no longer have as much energy and that our labor performance It has decreased so we are trying to get ahead, but we don’t know how to do it. In short, a loop!
Exhaustion phase: When the resistance phase fails, the exhaustion phase appears where the stress is so intense and has been maintained for so long that our body can no longer cope with it. It is at this moment when different symptoms on a physical, psychological and social level, a product of having maintained stress over time. Examples of these problems are: depression insomnia, addictions, Social isolation intestinal problems, weakening of the immune system, etc.
Strategies and tips to manage stress in the workplace:
There are different strategies to avoid or minimize work stress, including changes in our habits (exercising, taking care of our diet, etc.). The strategies to learn to manage the response we have to stress and, on the other hand, the tools that allow us to organize ourselves, are effective in being able to manage it. Some of them are the following:
Strategies to learn to cope with stress:
Learn to relax: All the techniques of relaxation They have in common that they teach how to control the level of activation by modifying certain physiological conditions (muscle tension, etc.). A very simple technique to apply is visualization, which mainly consists of closing your eyes for a few minutes in a quiet room and visualizing an image that gives us peace of mind. The goal is to focus our attention on the details of the image we see (the noise of the sea, the movement of the water, etc.) while breathing deeply.
Control your breathing: One of the reactions that accompanies stress is hyperventilation, that is, rapid, shallow and accelerated breathing that causes stress to increase and be maintained. In this sense, diaphragmatic breathing helps to have a more complete and slow breathing, which contributes to a stress reduction This consists of breathing by moving the abdomen out and in, allowing the rib cage and lungs to expand.
Question what you think: Let’s not forget that for a person to feel stress, they must evaluate a certain situation as threatening. Therefore, for it to decrease it will also be necessary to apply techniques that allow us to modify our thoughts about the situation. The most common thing is that when we are stressed Our thoughts are negative and pessimistic, these being the reason that we cannot adequately manage the conflict and we only perceive the negative of the situation. The best way to modify them is to be aware of them and replace them with more objective thoughts.
An example of irrational thinking would be the following:My boss told me that I have to modify a task that I already considered finished, that means that I am doing everything very badly and that he is not satisfied with the work I do” and the ideal would be to replace it with ““My boss has told me that I have to modify how I have carried out a task and it is true that I could improve it, but if he has not told me anything about the others, it is because he thinks it is correct how I do them”.
Strategies to improve the organization of work tasks:
Manage your time: Sometimes we focus on the amount of things we have to do, we feel like we lack time, we get nervous and, consequently, we end up wasting more time. An example to improve our daily time management is to write down all the tasks that we have to do on a specific day and divide those that are larger into small steps. Once that is done, estimate the time that we will dedicate to each of them taking into account their complexity, their priority and the hours of the day when we usually have the greatest concentration to do the most difficult or tedious tasks.
Improve your social skills: You may be wondering why improving your social skills could help you manage stress The reality is that human beings are social beings and the work environment necessarily involves having to communicate with other people to ask for help, manage conflicts, ask for advice, communicate an opinion, etc. Not being able to carry out these actions assertively can make us feel alone, helpless, angry, etc. and, therefore, increase our stress in the work environment. It’s all a matter of practice and improving social skills is no exception. For this reason, it is important to turn to a professional in the event that we are not able to modify them and they cause us discomfort.
When is it necessary to ask for professional help?
As we have mentioned previously, stress can be functional and drive us, but on other occasions, it can cause discomfort and harm our quality of life and well-being. Some of the signs that indicate the need to ask for professional help are:
Social isolation
Difficulty continuing with activities
Insomnia or hypersomnia
Predominantly irritable or sad mood
Lack of energy or concentration
Muscle problems
Stomach problems
Loss or significant increase in appetite
sexual problems
Among others
It is normal that some situations overcome us and we do not know how to manage them. When this happens, it is necessary to ask for professional help in order to learn tools and strategies to manage those situations that generate stress and, in this way, improve our well-being.
If you think you may suffer from work stress or burnout, remember that in WorldPsychologists You have access to an extensive platform of psychology professionals to request online or in-person therapy. When performing your search, you can filter by specialty and thus find the most appropriate professional who can help you with your case. We also recommend that you access our Clinic, where psychologists offer psychological guidance on different topics, or visit our social networks.
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This article has been reviewed by our editorial team at PsychologyFor to ensure accuracy, clarity, and adherence to evidence-based research. The content is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional mental health advice.
